An Americanism dating back to 1950–55
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The land was off-limits to development for years given its environmentally protected status.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 11, 2026
During the early days of the Iran conflict, investors flocked to Hyperliquid, a decentralized exchange off-limits to most U.S. customers, to trade crude-oil perpetual futures over the weekend, while traditional futures markets were closed.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 5, 2026
Xi reportedly name-dropped his friend Putin to Trump last week, when the two leaders walked through Zhongnanhai, which is normally off-limits to foreign visitors, joking about how Putin had visited Beijing's political sanctuary before.
From BBC • May 18, 2026
In an extraordinary scene, the two presidents sparred on national television about the usually off-limits subjects of human rights and the Tiananmen crackdown.
From Barron's • May 15, 2026
There was no boundary he couldn’t touch, no field off-limits, no end to what was possible.
From "The Season of Styx Malone" by Kekla Magoon
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
